Tag Archives: kids

Going Healthy, Going Strong, Life, Parenting

How To Get Your Child Exercising

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Getting your child to exercise in the current day and age is often a lot easier said than done. After all, we live in a period whereby playing on video games for hours on end seems to be the norm. Needless to say, this is no good for your child, not only in terms of maintaining a healthy weight but also in terms of their development and their social life. With that being said, read on to discover some of the different ways that you can encourage your child to exercise.

Choose something fun – There is only one place to begin, and this is by choosing something fun. You can find some suggestions at mommypoppins.com. Your child is not going to want to exercise if you suggest something that he or she does not enjoy. The more a child enjoys an activity, the more they are likely to continue with it, and they won’t even see it as exercise either.

Limit computer and television use – If you are going to be able to get your child moving, you need to make sure that there is not something else that is more tempting, i.e. television or video games. Each child should only be allowed one to two hours of total screen time per day. This includes video games, computers, videos, and television. Once this time is up, they will be more encouraged to play outside because they know they can’t sit glued to the screen anymore.

Turn it into a fun family activity – You can use exercise as an opportunity to get all of the family together and do something fun. After all, we all need physical activity, irrespective of how old we are. There are so many different activities you can do, from laser quests, such as those at stratumhq.com, to assault causes. Why not get a different family member to choose the activity each time? You could do something every month or fortnight – whatever suits you and your budget best.

Provide active toys – The fourth and final tip is to buy your child active toys. Of course, you can wait until it is their birthday or Christmas to do so. If it is fun and benefits your child’s health, it is a winner! There are lots of toys that will encourage children to get outside and be active, from jump ropes to balls. Take a look online and see the different options that are available.

As you can see, there are a number of different options available to you in terms of encouraging your child to exercise. If you follow the suggestions that have been presented above, you should be able to get your child exercising more regularly. Not only will this ensure they get the physical activity they need, but it can help with other elements of their social and personal development too.

Parenting

Tips for Building Confidence in Your Kids

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Whether your kids turn out to be naturally shy or outgoing, you have a big role to play in developing their confidence and making them feel like they can take on the world. Of course, everyone’s approach to parenting varies, but there are a few universal tips which we are going to discuss in this article. Both your words and actions can end up making a big difference, so we are going to talk through a few different points in this blog post which should spark off some creativity in the parenting approaches that you choose to take.

Demonstrate Love to Your Child

The basis of confidence is often formed on love. If you can demonstrate to your child on a regular basis that you love them regardless of who they turn out to be, this can end up giving them a great boost of self-esteem and assurance. Your child needs to feel accepted by you, but you can also encourage siblings to show this same level of affection, as well as helping your kids to form close connections with friends. Though it may be difficult to show a focused level of affection to your kids for an extended period of time, you should try to listen to them as much as possible, encourage them in their pursuits, and show support of their ideas.

Give Praise When it is Due

Kids of all age crave the approval of their parents, but this is especially true in younger children. This doesn’t mean that you should simply offer them a pat on the back no matter what they have done, but if you offer praise appropriately, they should start to feel confident in their achievements. Of course, it is also important to instill the values of hard work and practice in improving their talents. After all, the world is not going to be as kind in offering praise no matter what they do.

Help Your Child Set Realistic Goals

One of the great pleasure in life for adults is achieving goals which they have set for themselves. You can give kids their first taste of this feeling by helping them to set and achieve some goals for themselves. Of course, you also need to make sure that they are realistic as this can easily get disheartening if not. With younger children, the goals should be short-term as they are less likely to have the patience and fortitude to achieve them. However, over time and with age, you can support them in achieving feats which are bigger and more complex.

Give Your Kids Independence

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One of the biggest steps in helping your kids to grow up into well-adjusted and confident adults is by giving them independence and gradually building this up over time. It may start out with giving them the opportunity to choose their own clothes from the likes of Nickis, but over time, you will want to allow them to go out on their own around the local neighborhood and beyond. Giving this independence is harder is the age of 24-hour news when you are brought so many negative news stories from around the world, but it is important that you allow your kids to take steps towards independence when the time is right.

Teach Resilience

As we mentioned earlier on, life is not always going to be plain sailing and there are bound to be setbacks and complications. It is how you respond to these that can end up making or breaking you. So, kids need to have these values of resilience instilled in them from a young age. You want to encourage them not to dwell on their failures and disappointments, but rather learn from them and come out the other side stronger. Try to help them with the steps of what they can do differently next time to improve their results and enjoy a more successful outcome to their problem.

Encourage Them in Their Pursuits and Hobbies

Another way that kids can gain confidence is through their outside pursuits and hobbies. First of all, you need to play a role in helping them to find their passions. Then, you need to encourage them to pursue these by enrolling them in classes, transporting them around and buying them the equipment that they need. It is a good idea for them to have both creative and fitness-based hobbies so that they learn to become well-rounded people who have a range of different interests. Even if their interests aren’t the same as yours, it is still important that you encourage them all the same.

Be Consistent in Your Parenting

A consistent and stable home life is one of the keys of encouraging your kids to be confident in the future. When your kids know the rules and boundaries, they know how they can and can’t acceptably behave. Essentially, you need to find a balance in giving them the freedom in their pursuits, while also reinforcing that there are certain consistent boundaries that they have to adhere to. As children get older, you may afford them the chance to have more input in their rules and restrictions, but you should still retain control in being their parent rather than trying to be their best friend.

Encourage Adventure and Discovery

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Even though rules are important, this doesn’t mean that you should rigidly control every part of your kids’ lives. You also need to allow them the freedom to develop a sense of adventure and joy in discovery. With younger kids, you may need to have a bigger role supervising from the sidelines. Day trips, vacations, the pursuit of hobbies, reading…these are all ways that kids can become more curious and adventurous.

Building confidence in your kids is something that you will keep doing for them throughout their childhood, and even into their adult lives. These are just a few of the best ways that you can achieve this.

Guest Post

10 Best Geeky Toys for Him

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I once read that kids are like little scientists. They learn about the world as they play. With the festive holidays coming along, you’ll need to get your smart kid an incredible toy. I am going to share with you some of the geeky gadgets that you could get your son this Christmas!

 

1.     Starter Kit from LittleBits

This fantastic kit from LitteBits has ten tiny and color-coded circuit boards which are attached to each other using magnets. Both of them perform different functions, and kids can easily see what’s happening as they add and take away modules. What I love most about it is that it allows children above eight years to follow the project plans to make essential objects.

 

2.     Anteater Bug Vac

Here is a baby anteater produced by Uncle Milton. It vacuums all the bugs using its snout and keeps them for closer observation in its stomach. Its belly is transparent to allow children to see and learn the insect movements.

 

3.     Makedo Find and Make Plane Kit

This fantastic set comes well equipped with hinges, clips, pins and some stickers. It gives children the chance of making a plane from just a cereal box! It’s a toy that teaches your kid the importance of creativity and recycling! I love that all you can still reuse its parts.

 

4.     Syma Helicopter

Although the name may roll off the tongue, it’s quite easy to fly. It’s designed to give your son impressive flying range every time. He’ll also love the multi-channeled remote meaning that he can operate more than one helicopter!

 

5.     Hosim All-Terrain RC Car

Thanks to its impressive power, this is arguably one of the best RC trucks for your smart boy. It can move on all kinds of terrain from grass, pavements and rough-roads. If he’s an outdoor person, then you should brighten up his holiday with this fantastic toy!

 

6.     RC Battling Trucks

Of course, we all know that remote control trucks are cool. In this awesome pack, you’ll get two intriguing infrared RC battle tanks. They’ll even sound like the real deal with matching cannon fire and engine sounds, and they come with other super cool features.

 

7.     Maisto R/C Rock Crawler RC Vehicle

Here’s a fantastic monster truck to give your son an improved outdoor playing experience. It may not be the fastest RC drift car for sale, but it’s quite affordable. Most importantly, your kid will love it!

 

8.     Nanoblocks Space Shuttle

These are just tiny construction blocks of 4mm. If your child is more than eight years old, he can remodel different things, for instance, the Taj Mahal or the Statue of Liberty. However, he’ll have to follow the instructions carefully.

 

9.     Fabric Sun Photo Kit

Here is one of the magical toys that you’re likely to come across. It boosts your child’s creativity as he draws on a sheet made from plastic using a particular kind of pencil. He should then put the plastic on some unique fabric allowing him to add things such as leaves, feather and paper shapes. Lastly, he needs to cover this using another plastic sheet and leave it to the sun to dry. In a world full of endless screens and beeping toys, this is a tasty and refreshing project for your smart boy.

 

10.  Roboraptor Toy

My son loves Dinosaurs and the movie Godzilla is one of his favorites. So, last Christmas I got him the Roboraptor. It’s a gadget that is fully assembled and ready to conquer the earth. Imagine controlling your own dinosaur?

Surprise your son with any of these toys and light up his world. Remember that with the growth of technology, video and computer games have taken our children captive. So, we must do all that we can to get them playing outside with other kids their age!